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Copies of Birth, Death or Marriage Certificates

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Written by: Bernard Punzalan

Published: 27 December 2019

CNMI

• Copies of birth (uncertified), death (uncertified), marriage (certified):  http://www.justice.gov.mp/uploads/Commonwealth_Recorder_5-27.pdf
• Certified birth and death records:  https://www.chcc.health/healthvitalstatistics.php

Guam

• Application for copy of birth, death or marriage certificate on Guam:  http://www.govguamdocs.com/dphss/docs/VitalStatistics/ApplicationforCopyofBirthMarriageDeathCertificate.pdf

1946 - Richard Flores Taitano and Maria Aflleje

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Written by: Bernard Punzalan

Published: 24 September 2019

Pictured in 1946 is Richard Flores Taitano and Maria Aflleje, with a layover in Hawaii and enroute to Berea College, Kentucky.  The second photo was featured 1947 in the The Courier-Journal, Louisville, Kentucky during their attendance at the college.

Richard Taitano served many years as a public servant with many accomplishments. He was the Valedictorian for his 1940 class on Guam. For more information about him see: https://www.guampedia.com/richard-flores-taitano/

If anyone has information or stories to share about Maria Aflleje, I would certainly appreciate adding it to the Chamorro Roots Genealogy Project. Her education and training at Berea College was prepping her for a teaching career on Guam.

Gadao Existed

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Written by: Bernard Punzalan

Published: 18 September 2019

It is very difficult to pinpoint if the legendary Gadao existed or was only a folk tale. But one can just about count on with certainty that if the name appears in oral or written history, chances are that a person with that name really existed.

My first finding of the name Gadao is recorded in 1724. A male (age unknown) by the name of Dionisio Gadao, of Merizo, is one of 16 witnesses that was interrogated by Don Manuel Diaz regarding Governor Luis Antonio Sanchez de Tagle’s conduct and alleged inappropriate activities.

Reference:

Rodrigue Levesque. 1998. History of Micronesia, A Collection of Source Documents, Volume 12 – Carolinians Drift to Guam, 1715-1728. Levesque Publications: Quebec, Canada

Rota’s Latte Stone Quarry According to Juan Taitano

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Written by: Bernard Punzalan

Published: 12 August 2019

    In a previous blog regarding Juan P. Manibusan I mentioned Hans Hornsbostel. What I did not mention was that Hornbostel wrote a series of articles, with the heading “Rota Days.” I found eleven so far ranging from 1935 to 1936. At this time I don’t know if there are anymore. Hornbostel indicated that his intent was not to write about the details of his archeological journey but more so about his encounters with the people.

    In Hornbostel’s third article, June 1935, he talks about Manibusan again, but this time did not identify his name. He was trying to get Manibusan to lead him to an ancient site, “trinchera taotaomona mona (trenches of the people of before time).”  Today, this site is known as the As Nieves Quarry in Rota, which is the largest unearthed set of latte stones in entire Mariana Island archipelago. Manibusan was adamantly firm that he would not take Hornbostel to the site because it was haunted by the spirits of the ancestors who were not his relatives. And, if he went there the taotaomona would give him no end of trouble if he trespassed. Hornbostel respected Manibusan’s and went looking for someone else to take him there.

    With very little success and options, Hornbostel somehow convinced Juan Taitano. Juan Taitano was Hornbostel’s landlord and was also reluctant to show him the way.  When they finally reached the site, Hornbostel was in awe.  He described and drew these sketches.  But like outsider in awe, he was dumbstruck with the question how did the people quarry great limestone monoliths without the aid of metal tools?

    “Looking at these trenches which had been constructed by removing the very small amount of the surface soil and then digging down into the coral rock, I remarked to Juan that I could not understand how these trenches were made, as those who made them had nothing to cut this compar­atively hard stone with. "Senor," said Juan, "it was quite easy. They did it with their fingers." Hornbostel looked at Taitano and told him that he just could not understand it. Juan responds, “Señor, it was quite easy. They did it with their fingers.

    I laughed thinking perhaps that Juan meant that these ancients, having supernatural powers, could, as often related in their folklore, perform miracles at will. But Juan insisted that this how it was done. So I said to him, show me.

    Whereupon he lit a fire on a coral rock, let it burn until the rock became very hot, then poured water on it, and lo, the rock was turned into lime which could easily be scraped away with fingers!

    So here we have a method of quarrying with fire and water! Very simple, but no previous research parties had guessed the method used. Much had been written of the wonder of how these primitive people quarried without iron, etc. The reason that no one had found the method used is also simple, for these civilized men had never built a camp fire on wet coral rock, and also, being learned men, they were specialists and had not studied chemistry. I was delighted to be able to record the fact that I had found that fire and water was employed by the ancient Chamorros, and indeed there is no doubt about this, for subsequent investigations revealed much charcoal scattered about the quarry.” (Hornbostel 1935, pp.301-302)

Reference:

Hornbostel, Hans G. 1935. Rota Days. Philippine Magazine. Retrieved from: https://books.google.com/books?id=KC_nAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA214&lpg=PA214&dq=hornbostel+rota+days&source=bl&ots=3evYU58OJJ&sig=ACfU3U0oE5s-gnLUYpWUyt9Y0x2NO2XrcQ&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjpzM2_jeLjAhUKTN8KHTDcDMAQ6AEwAHoECAkQAQ#v=onepage&q=hornbostel%20rota%20days&f=false